3.15.2013

Revisiting Frida

Rich floral embroideries, Mexican folk weavings, chunky beads and, above all, saturated colors. These are some of the elements used by Julie Taymor and her team to effectively bring Frida Kahlo's world to life on the big screen.

A much smaller computer screen is where I've seen the movie in recent months (the High's monumental exhibition,Frida & Diego: Passion, Politics and Painting, inspired me to take another look). But now I can experience all the vibrant details on a grander scale. Through May 11, the Museum is screening Frida every Saturday at 2 p.m. If you're in Atlanta, watch Hayek don the turquoise beads, paint the body cast, and channel the artist's spirit, then head to the galleries to see the highly personal pieces in person.

[Photo my own.]

Btw, about midway through the film I spied a headboard done in what appears to be an indigenous geometric that looks a lot like the woven border of Maggie Galton's cocktail napkins, for sale in the High gift shop. And speaking of 21st century Mexican aesthetics, on Thursday, March 21 at 7 p.m., the Museum presents Dialogos: Contemporary Mexican Design. Héctor Esrawe and Ignacio Cadena, co-founders of THiNC, will be on hand for conversation along with the High’s Curator of Decorative Arts and Design, Sarah Schleuning, and Ana Elena Mallet, Consulting Curator for MoMA’s Destination: Mexico.